A November To Remember For Brooks

David Teel

November 30, 1997|By DAVID TEEL Daily Press

He's not joining Peyton Manning and Ryan Leaf at the Heisman banquet. He's not challenging Thad Busby for first-team all-conference. Heck, he's not even the most famous quarterback in southeast Virginia.

But once the calendar turned to November, Virginia's Aaron Brooks became as good as a quarterback can be. Saturday he was downright brilliant, passing for a school-record 390 yards in a 34-20 rout of Virginia Tech at Scott Stadium.

Ever since Brooks arrived here from Ferguson High, Virginia coaches have gushed about his ability. Big, strong and mobile. Pro-caliber arm. What wasn't to like?

But something was missing. Confidence? Maturity? Experience? Whatever the problems, when Brooks failed to beat out the exceedingly mediocre Tim Sherman last year, you had to wonder if all that talent was going to waste.

Brooks, a redshirt junior, won the starting job by default this season, and his first seven games produced six touchdown passes and six interceptions. He was among the worst quarterbacks in a bad conference, perceived as a mere caretaker until Hampton High phenom Ronald Curry arrived next season.

Then November arrived. Then Brooks began posting numbers that would make any quarterback - Manning and Curry included - envious. He finished the month with 14 touchdown passes and one interception as the Cavaliers closed with three victories in their final four outings.

``I can't explain it,'' Virginia coach George Welsh said.

Let's try anyway. First, Brooks had to mesh with Sparky Woods, Virginia's first-year offensive coordinator. Then, he had to survive the nasty defenses of Auburn, North Carolina and Florida State. Finally, he had to learn - the hard way - that forcing passes into multiple coverage is suicide, no matter how strong your arm.

``It was just a matter of time,'' Brooks said.

It was just a matter of time before Brooks and friends began flogging Virginia Tech on Saturday, too. Virginia Tech was perfect the past two Novembers, but this season the Hokies peaked on Sept. 13. They mauled Syracuse, 31-3, that afternoon and spent the remaining months of '97 regressing.

Losing at home to Miami of Ohio was the first, but hardly the last, sign of trouble. And while anyone who knows Pop Warner from John Warner could tell Tech was offensively challenged, it was the defense that collapsed.

West Virginia crammed the ball down the Hokies' throats, and Pittsburgh passed them dizzy. Saturday Virginia did a little of both as Tech suffered glaring breakdowns on successive second-quarter plays - a 60-yard Thomas Jones run and a 55-yard pass from Brooks to Anthony Southern. Why, the Hokies even yielded a 31-yard completion to Brad Dittman, a 286-pound converted offensive lineman who needed oxygen and CPR after his rumble down the left sideline.

Cornell Brown, please come back.

Then again, Virginia Tech didn't have the luxury of defending against Virginia Tech. And what a luxury that has become. Quarterback Al Clark has a gimpy knee, and his receiving corps is barely Division II caliber.

Yes, the margin Saturday was respectable. But it should have been much, much worse. Virginia missed three field goals, an extra point and lost a fumble at Virginia Tech's 2-yard line.

It was, in fact, a mismatch, a mismatch that further clouds both teams' postseason hopes.

Virginia and Virginia Tech are both 7-4. The Cavaliers are certainly more deserving of a bowl bid, but due to conference contracts and politics, they may get jilted. The Hokies, conversely, appear assured one of the Big East's four guaranteed invites. So it goes when you compete in the nation's worst major football conference.

But while the next week offers intriguing bowl speculation, it's nothing compared to Virginia's preseason practices next summer. Curry, the finest prep quarterback imaginable, has given the Cavaliers a half-hearted commitment. Brooks is entrenched as the starter, Dan Ellis as the back-up. But given Curry's fondness for basketball, redshirting him in football would be mighty risky.